Don't show this message again
42 U.S. Code § 9601. Definitions
For purpose of this subchapter—(1)
The term “act of God” means an unanticipated grave natural disaster or other natural phenomenon of an exceptional, inevitable, and irresistible character, the effects of which could not have been prevented or avoided by the exercise of due care or foresight.
(2)
The term “Administrator” means the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
(3)
The term “barrel” means forty-two United States gallons at sixty degrees Fahrenheit.
(4)
The term “claim” means a demand in writing for a sum certain.
(5)
The term “claimant” means any person who presents a claim for compensation under this chapter.
(6)
The term “damages” means damages for injury or loss of natural resources as set forth in section 9607(a) or 9611(b) of this title.
(7)
The term “drinking water supply” means any raw or finished water source that is or may be used by a public water system (as defined in the Safe Drinking Water Act [42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.]) or as drinking water by one or more individuals.
(8)
The term “environment” means (A) the navigable waters, the waters of the contiguous zone, and the ocean waters of which the natural resources are under the exclusive management authority of the United States under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act [16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.], and (B) any other surface water, ground water, drinking water supply, land surface or subsurface strata, or ambient air within the United States or under the jurisdiction of the United States.
(9)
The term “facility” means (A) any building, structure, installation, equipment, pipe or pipeline (including any pipe into a sewer or publicly owned treatment works), well, pit, pond, lagoon, impoundment, ditch, landfill, storage container, motor vehicle, rolling stock, or aircraft, or (B) any site or area where a hazardous substance has been deposited, stored, disposed of, or placed, or otherwise come to be located; but does not include any consumer product in consumer use or any vessel.
(10)
The term “federally permitted release” means (A) discharges in compliance with a permit under section 402 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [33 U.S.C. 1342], (B) discharges resulting from circumstances identified and reviewed and made part of the public record with respect to a permit issued or modified under section 402 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and subject to a condition of such permit, (C) continuous or anticipated intermittent discharges from a point source, identified in a permit or permit application under section 402 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, which are caused by events occurring within the scope of relevant operating or treatment systems, (D) discharges in compliance with a legally enforceable permit under section 404 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [33 U.S.C. 1344], (E) releases in compliance with a legally enforceable final permit issued pursuant to section 3005(a) through (d) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act [42 U.S.C. 6925(a)–(d)] from a hazardous waste treatment, storage, or disposal facility when such permit specifically identifies the hazardous substances and makes such substances subject to a standard of practice, control procedure or bioassay limitation or condition, or other control on the hazardous substances in such releases, (F) any release in compliance with a legally enforceable permit issued under section 1412 of title 33 of [1]section 1413 of title 33, (G) any injection of fluids authorized under Federal underground injection control programs or State programs submitted for Federal approval (and not disapproved by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency) pursuant to part C of the Safe Drinking Water Act [42 U.S.C. 300h et seq.], (H) any emission into the air subject to a permit or control regulation under section 111 [42 U.S.C. 7411], section 112 [42 U.S.C. 7412], title I part C [42 U.S.C. 7470 et seq.], title I part D [42 U.S.C. 7501 et seq.], or State implementation plans submitted in accordance with section 110 of the Clean Air Act [42 U.S.C. 7410] (and not disapproved by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency), including any schedule or waiver granted, promulgated, or approved under these sections, (I) any injection of fluids or other materials authorized under applicable State law (i) for the purpose of stimulating or treating wells for the production of crude oil, natural gas, or water, (ii) for the purpose of secondary, tertiary, or other enhanced recovery of crude oil or natural gas, or (iii) which are brought to the surface in conjunction with the production of crude oil or natural gas and which are reinjected, (J) the introduction of any pollutant into a publicly owned treatment works when such pollutant is specified in and in compliance with applicable pretreatment standards of section 307(b) or (c) of the Clean Water Act [33 U.S.C. 1317(b), (c)] and enforceable requirements in a pretreatment program submitted by a State or municipality for Federal approval under section 402 of such Act [33 U.S.C. 1342], and (K) any release of source, special nuclear, or byproduct material, as those terms are defined in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 [42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.], in compliance with a legally enforceable license, permit, regulation, or order issued pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954.
(11)
The term “Fund” or “Trust Fund” means the Hazardous Substance Superfund established by section 9507 of title 26.
(12)
The term “ground water” means water in a saturated zone or stratum beneath the surface of land or water.
(13)
The term “guarantor” means any person, other than the owner or operator, who provides evidence of financial responsibility for an owner or operator under this chapter.
(14)
The term “hazardous substance” means (A) any substance designated pursuant to section 311(b)(2)(A) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [33 U.S.C. 1321(b)(2)(A)], (B) any element, compound, mixture, solution, or substance designated pursuant to section 9602 of this title, (C) any hazardous waste having the characteristics identified under or listed pursuant to section 3001 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act [42 U.S.C. 6921] (but not including any waste the regulation of which under the Solid Waste Disposal Act [42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.] has been suspended by Act of Congress), (D) any toxic pollutant listed under section 307(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [33 U.S.C. 1317(a)], (E) any hazardous air pollutant listed under section 112 of the Clean Air Act [42 U.S.C. 7412], and (F) any imminently hazardous chemical substance or mixture with respect to which the Administrator has taken action pursuant to section 7 of the Toxic Substances Control Act [15 U.S.C. 2606]. The term does not include petroleum, including crude oil or any fraction thereof which is not otherwise specifically listed or designated as a hazardous substance under subparagraphs (A) through (F) of this paragraph, and the term does not include natural gas, natural gas liquids, liquefied natural gas, or synthetic gas usable for fuel (or mixtures of natural gas and such synthetic gas).
(15)
The term “navigable waters” or “navigable waters of the United States” means the waters of the United States, including the territorial seas.
(16)
The term “natural resources” means land, fish, wildlife, biota, air, water, ground water, drinking water supplies, and other such resources belonging to, managed by, held in trust by, appertaining to, or otherwise controlled by the United States (including the resources of the fishery conservation zone established by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act [16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.]), any State or local government, any foreign government, any Indian tribe, or, if such resources are subject to a trust restriction on alienation, any member of an Indian tribe.
(17)
The term “offshore facility” means any facility of any kind located in, on, or under, any of the navigable waters of the United States, and any facility of any kind which is subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and is located in, on, or under any other waters, other than a vessel or a public vessel.
(18)
The term “onshore facility” means any facility (including, but not limited to, motor vehicles and rolling stock) of any kind located in, on, or under, any land or nonnavigable waters within the United States.
(19)
The term “otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of the United States” means subject to the jurisdiction of the United States by virtue of United States citizenship, United States vessel documentation or numbering, or as provided by international agreement to which the United States is a party.
(20)
(A)
The term “owner or operator” means (i) in the case of a vessel, any person owning, operating, or chartering by demise, such vessel, (ii) in the case of an onshore facility or an offshore facility, any person owning or operating such facility, and (iii) in the case of any facility, title or control of which was conveyed due to bankruptcy, foreclosure, tax delinquency, abandonment, or similar means to a unit of State or local government, any person who owned, operated, or otherwise controlled activities at such facility immediately beforehand. Such term does not include a person, who, without participating in the management of a vessel or facility, holds indicia of ownership primarily to protect his security interest in the vessel or facility.
(B)
In the case of a hazardous substance which has been accepted for transportation by a common or contract carrier and except as provided in section 9607(a)(3) or (4) of this title, (i) the term “owner or operator” shall mean such common carrier or other bona fide for hire carrier acting as an independent contractor during such transportation, (ii) the shipper of such hazardous substance shall not be considered to have caused or contributed to any release during such transportation which resulted solely from circumstances or conditions beyond his control.
(C)
In the case of a hazardous substance which has been delivered by a common or contract carrier to a disposal or treatment facility and except as provided in section 9607(a)(3) or (4) of this title, (i) the term “owner or operator” shall not include such common or contract carrier, and (ii) such common or contract carrier shall not be considered to have caused or contributed to any release at such disposal or treatment facility resulting from circumstances or conditions beyond its control.
(D)
The term “owner or operator” does not include a unit of State or local government which acquired ownership or control through seizure or otherwise in connection with law enforcement activity, or through bankruptcy, tax delinquency, abandonment, or other circumstances in which the government acquires title by virtue of its function as sovereign. The exclusion provided under this paragraph shall not apply to any State or local government which has caused or contributed to the release or threatened release of a hazardous substance from the facility, and such a State or local government shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter in the same manner and to the same extent, both procedurally and substantively, as any nongovernmental entity, including liability under section 9607 of this title.
(E)Exclusion of certain alaska native villages and native corporations.—
(i)In general.—The term “owner or operator” does not include, with respect to a facility conveyed to a Native village or Native Corporation (as those terms are defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act [43 U.S.C. 1602]) under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act [43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.]—
(I)
the Native village or Native Corporation that received the facility from the United States Government; or
(II)
a successor in interest to which the facility was conveyed under section 14(c) of such Act [43 U.S.C. 1613(c)].
(ii)Limitation.—
The exclusion provided under this subparagraph shall not apply to any entity described in clause (i) that causes or contributes to a release or threatened release of a hazardous substance from the facility conveyed as described in such clause.
(F)Exclusion of lenders not participants in management.—
(i)Indicia of ownership to protect security.—
The term “owner or operator” does not include a person that is a lender that, without participating in the management of a vessel or facility, holds indicia of ownership primarily to protect the security interest of the person in the vessel or facility.
(ii)Foreclosure.—The term “owner or operator” does not include a person that is a lender that did not participate in management of a vessel or facility prior to foreclosure, notwithstanding that the person—
(I)
forecloses on the vessel or facility; and
(II)
after foreclosure, sells, re-leases (in the case of a lease finance transaction), or liquidates the vessel or facility, maintains business activities, winds up operations, undertakes a response action under section 9607(d)(1) of this title or under the direction of an on-scene coordinator appointed under the National Contingency Plan, with respect to the vessel or facility, or takes any other measure to preserve, protect, or prepare the vessel or facility prior to sale or disposition,
if the person seeks to sell, re-lease (in the case of a lease finance transaction), or otherwise divest the person of the vessel or facility at the earliest practicable, commercially reasonable time, on commercially reasonable terms, taking into account market conditions and legal and regulatory requirements.
(G)Participation in management.—For purposes of subparagraph (F)—
(i) the term “participate in management”—
(I)
means actually participating in the management or operational affairs of a vessel or facility; and
(II)
does not include merely having the capacity to influence, or the unexercised right to control, vessel or facility operations;
(ii) a person that is a lender and that holds indicia of ownership primarily to protect a security interest in a vessel or facility shall be considered to participate in management only if, while the borrower is still in possession of the vessel or facility encumbered by the security interest, the person—
(I)
exercises decisionmaking control over the environmental compliance related to the vessel or facility, such that the person has undertaken responsibility for the hazardous substance handling or disposal practices related to the vessel or facility; or
(II) exercises control at a level comparable to that of a manager of the vessel or facility, such that the person has assumed or manifested responsibility—
(aa)
for the overall management of the vessel or facility encompassing day-to-day decisionmaking with respect to environmental compliance; or
(bb)
over all or substantially all of the operational functions (as distinguished from financial or administrative functions) of the vessel or facility other than the function of environmental compliance;
(iii)
the term “participate in management” does not include performing an act or failing to act prior to the time at which a security interest is created in a vessel or facility; and
(iv) the term “participate in management” does not include—
(I)
holding a security interest or abandoning or releasing a security interest;
(II)
including in the terms of an extension of credit, or in a contract or security agreement relating to the extension, a covenant, warranty, or other term or condition that relates to environmental compliance;
(III)
monitoring or enforcing the terms and conditions of the extension of credit or security interest;
(IV)
monitoring or undertaking 1 or more inspections of the vessel or facility;
(V)
requiring a response action or other lawful means of addressing the release or threatened release of a hazardous substance in connection with the vessel or facility prior to, during, or on the expiration of the term of the extension of credit;
(VI)
providing financial or other advice or counseling in an effort to mitigate, prevent, or cure default or diminution in the value of the vessel or facility;
(VII)
restructuring, renegotiating, or otherwise agreeing to alter the terms and conditions of the extension of credit or security interest, exercising forbearance;
(VIII)
exercising other remedies that may be available under applicable law for the breach of a term or condition of the extension of credit or security agreement; or
(IX)
conducting a response action under section 9607(d) of this title or under the direction of an on-scene coordinator appointed under the National Contingency Plan,
if the actions do not rise to the level of participating in management (within the meaning of clauses (i) and (ii)).
(H)Other terms.—As used in this chapter:
(i)Extension of credit.—The term “extension of credit” includes a lease finance transaction—
(I)
in which the lessor does not initially select the leased vessel or facility and does not during the lease term control the daily operations or maintenance of the vessel or facility; or
(II)
that conforms with regulations issued by the appropriate Federal banking agency or the appropriate State bank supervisor (as those terms are defined in section 1813 of title 12) or with regulations issued by the National Credit Union Administration Board, as appropriate.
(ii)Financial or administrative function.—
The term “financial or administrative function” includes a function such as that of a credit manager, accounts payable officer, accounts receivable officer, personnel manager, comptroller, or chief financial officer, or a similar function.
(iii)Foreclosure; foreclose.—The terms “foreclosure” and “foreclose” mean, respectively, acquiring, and to acquire, a vessel or facility through—
(I)
(aa)
purchase at sale under a judgment or decree, power of sale, or nonjudicial foreclosure sale;
(bb)
a deed in lieu of foreclosure, or similar conveyance from a trustee; or
(cc)
repossession,
if the vessel or facility was security for an extension of credit previously contracted;
(II)
conveyance pursuant to an extension of credit previously contracted, including the termination of a lease agreement; or
(III)
any other formal or informal manner by which the person acquires, for subsequent disposition, title to or possession of a vessel or facility in order to protect the security interest of the person.
(iv)Lender.—The term “lender” means—
(I)
an insured depository institution (as defined in section 1813 of title 12);
(II)
an insured credit union (as defined in section 1752 of title 12);
(III)
a bank or association chartered under the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. 2001 et seq.);
(IV)
a leasing or trust company that is an affiliate of an insured depository institution;
(V)
any person (including a successor or assignee of any such person) that makes a bona fide extension of credit to or takes or acquires a security interest from a nonaffiliated person;
(VI)
the Federal National Mortgage Association, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, the Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation, or any other entity that in a bona fide manner buys or sells loans or interests in loans;
(VII)
a person that insures or guarantees against a default in the repayment of an extension of credit, or acts as a surety with respect to an extension of credit, to a nonaffiliated person; and
(VIII)
a person that provides title insurance and that acquires a vessel or facility as a result of assignment or conveyance in the course of underwriting claims and claims settlement.
(v)Operational function.—
The term “operational function” includes a function such as that of a facility or plant manager, operations manager, chief operating officer, or chief executive officer.
(vi)Security interest.—
The term “security interest” includes a right under a mortgage, deed of trust, assignment, judgment lien, pledge, security agreement, factoring agreement, or lease and any other right accruing to a person to secure the repayment of money, the performance of a duty, or any other obligation by a nonaffiliated person.